Sotheby’s sent basketball fans’ pulses racing when the venerable auction house announced it would be selling The Dynasty collection, which includes shoes worn by NBA legend Michael Jordan in the championship-clinching game for each of his six NBA titles. It was always expected the final price would be high, but $8 million is still eye-popping by any standards.

Many believe Jordan is the greatest player in NBA history, and he has the statistics to back their claims. Jordan’s career resume is full of individual accolades, including:

• 14-time NBA All-Star
• 10-time NBA Scoring Champion
• Rookie of the Year
• Five-time NBA MVP
• 10-Time All-NBA First team
• Nine-time All-NBA Defensive First Team

The Dynasty Collection Represents Jordan’s Greatest Accomplishment

As impressive as those statistics and honors are, Jordan has one career accomplishment that stands head and shoulders above the rest. He led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA finals and won six championships. He also won six NBA Finals Most Valuable Player awards in those series, an accomplishment that marks him as the best player on the floor in every championship series he played in.

What makes this accomplishment more amazing is the list of players Jordan faced in the finals to get those six championships — Magic Johnson, Clyde Drexler, Charles Barkley and Karl Malone would all come up short against His Airness, and they are all NBA hall-of-famers on the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players list.

Jordan’s undefeated record in the finals is unprecedented and it remains unmatched. The closest any player could come to Jordan’s undefeated finals record is Boston Celtics great Bill Russell, who won 10 out of 11 NBA finals before finally losing to the Los Angeles Lakers and Wilt Chamberlain. Jordan’s record in the NBA finals is arguably his greatest achievement in a career characterized by over-achieving.

It’s Unlikely There Will Ever be Another Dynasty Collection

That’s what makes the Dynasty collection so special. These are the shoes that the greatest player in NBA history wore during his most historic moments. Another factor that adds value to the shoes is the improbability of Jordan’s undefeated streak in six NBA finals will ever be matched or exceeded. The finals are the ultimate test of a basketball team and its best player.